Chapter 5

By the time Blackarachnia reached command, she was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't notice Optimus and Rhinox. Both looked up as soon as she entered.

"Can we help you?" Primal's tone was harsh.

"What?" she looked up. "Oh it's just you two. Sorry, I didn't realize there was anyone here."

"Obviously," said Rhinox. "What brings you to command so late at night?"

"Couldn't sleep," she sat down in a chair on the other side of the main council. "Mind if I hang out here for a while?"

"Not at all," Optimus told her. "In fact, you could probably help us."

"Wow," the female chuckled humorlessly. "First time for everything. Okay, boys, what've you got?"

For the next megacycle, Blackarachnia worked with them on various projects, including defenses, up grades, and weaponry. Engrossed in the tasks, she nearly forgot why she was down in command in the first place. When the earlier events floated back into her thoughts, she became very quiet and lost focus on her work. Optimus and Rhinox exchanged curious glances.

"What's wrong?" asked the Maximal leader.

"Nothing," she lied. "I was just thinking," she chewed on her lower lip for a moment. "Optimus, have you ever heard of anyone named Isis Khmer?"

His green optics widened for a nanoclick. "Why do you ask?"

"I…I had a weird run in with Tarantulas earlier," she confessed, "and he mentioned that name. Do you know who it is?"

"I've never heard it," Rhinox shook his head.

"I have," Optimus replied dryly. Blackarachnia and Rhinox looked up at him, and the large transformer turned to the scientist. "Rhinox, would you please excuse us for a little while?"

The green and brown transformer nodded and left. Optimus waited until he was out of earshot before turning to Blackarachnia. "Alright, now tell me exactly what happened."

"Tarantulas said something about me not knowing who I was on Cybertron," she began to pace. "He's right, of coarse, but then he mentioned that name, and didn't say anything else, just left."

"Humm, that's not like him," the Maximal leader reasoned. "I always thought he wanted you dead, considering your history with him."

"I'm sure he does," she agreed, "but I know Tarantulas; he loves to play mind games before he goes in for the kill. That's why I wanted to know if there was any truth to what he was saying."

"I don't know exactly what he told you, but Isis Khmer was a real person."

* * * * * * * * * *

Dinobot put down his sword and took a deep breath, releasing it very slowly to stabilize the rate of his fluid pump.

"End simulation," he growled, still a bit winded from the workout.

"Acknowledged," sounded the emotionless voice of the computer. The sandy colored bamboo mat disappeared from beneath his feet, and the warrior found himself once again inside the large barren dome-shaped room. He picked up the abandoned sword and placed it back on the shelf with the other weapons.

"Enough destruction for one night," he said to himself, heading back to command from his daily training in the VR simulator. He rubbed the back of his neck and stretched his sore muscles, all the while amused by the fact that he usually got a better workout from his exercises in the VR simulator then on the battle field, fighting the Predacons.

The door to command slid open with a hiss, and Dinobot was about to step inside when he noticed Blackarachnia who was talking to the Maximal leader. They seemed so focused on the conversation that neither noticed the open door, or even his presence. The former Predacon decided to wait and stepped back into the shadows.

* * * * * * * * * *

"Why 'was?'" Blackarachnia asked.

"I can't be sure," Optimus admitted. "Isis was assigned to the Axalon based on her extraordinary combat skills. Her mission was to keep Protoform X in check. I assume she's dead, because you and Airazor were the only females to survive. The remaining protoforms went off line a long time ago."

"Tarantulas seemed to think I was Isis Khmer," she commented.

"I don't see how that's possible. Isis was the only protoform who was allowed to keep all of her memories. If you were her, you would have known it. Unless…" he frowned and looked at her.

"Well," Optimus hesitated. "If you were really Isis Khmer, the shell program and whatever else Tarantulas did to you, would have most likely interfered with the memories. It's a long shot, but it might explain why he mentioned that name. I think it's safe to assume that Tarantulas knows something we don't."

"I could be wrong," Blackarachnia said carefully. "He made it sound like he knew me before. You know, back on Cybertron. Is that possible? This woman… Isis Khmer, did she ever cross paths with him?"

"She may have," Optimus told her. "Isis dealt with a lot of scum in her days. If I knew who Tarantulas was on Cybertron, I could say one way or the other. Look, I really don't know what to tell you. Your memory banks were probably damaged beyond repair when he installed the hell program."

"But if Isis was so important, wouldn't there be a backup copy or something?" the female persisted. "I know that in the days of the Great War, the Autobots and Deceptacons had something called memory cubes. They saved the memories and personalities of warriors that were badly damaged until they could be repaired. Don't we have something like that? This is very important, Optimus. I have to know."

"There is a backup," he confirmed, "but it's incomplete."

"Define 'incomplete.'"

"It has ten stellar cycles worth of memories," he explained. "From the time she was fifteen stellar cycles of age, when she started her military training."

"Any you just assumed it wasn't necessary for her to recall her childhood?" Blackarachnia was angry, though she wasn't sure why.

"It's not like that, but you have to understand that we didn't expect complications like this. Some even thought that the backup copy was too much. But in case complications arouse, which they did, the most important thing was for her to be able to recall her training. No one expected this unfortunate turn of events, Blackarachnia. None of us meant for this to happen."

Blackarachnia sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose in mild frustration. "It's not your fault, primal, but I still don't see how any of this is helpful. Is there any way to tell if I am Isis Khmer?"

"Actually that's a lot simpler than you might think," Optimus smiled. "Do you know the I.D. number of your stasis pod?"

She nodded. "Yeah, it was 1311-2394."

"I have a list of all the stasis pods that were on board the Axalon and who was in which pod. If you give me a megacycle, I can tell you exactly which pod Isis Khmer was assigned to."

"And if the numbers match…" she began.

"If they match, it's safe to say that the Maximal military can welcome back one of their best female warriors of all time," Optimus finished for her. "Now I suggest you get some sleep. I'll tell you what I find out in the morning."

Blackarachnia nodded and turned leave. "One more thing," she remembered and faced Optimus again. "Where is this backup copy?"

"Oh," Optimus looked uncomfortable. "That's a piece of bad news?"

"Where is it?" she insisted on knowing.

"It's in a secret compartment of your stasis pod. Which means…"

"…Tarantulas has it," she realized in horror.

* * * * * * * * * *

The raptor's gaze followed Blackarachnia as she left command and headed back to her quarters. . He stepped out of the shadows, arms crossed over his torso plate. If anyone could see the look in his optics, they would have been terrified.